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Deventer Energie Coöperatie UA
600 members. Established in 2012
A business plan to…
BRIGHTER is an innovative model for neighbourhood-based energy communities. The project combines solar and wind energy with neighbourhood and home batteries, as well as smart energy management systems, to better balance local generation, storage, and consumption. Its goals are to reduce grid congestion, lower energy costs, and strengthen energy democracy through cooperative ownership. In two different neighbourhoods, a scalable business model will be tested, with active involvement from residents, housing associations, the municipality, and the grid operator. The result is a replicable blueprint for affordable, sustainable, and locally anchored energy systems in the Netherlands and across Europe.
"“With this European support, we can further develop the business case and project structure in a solid way. This support helps us develop a strong “Deventer model” for energy sharing that can later be applied in other cities as well.""
Siep Littooij - Chair of Deventer Energie Cooperatie
Impact in the community
BRIGHTER is expected to deliver significant social, economic, and environmental benefits to the community. By enabling local generation, storage, and smart energy management, households will benefit from lower and more stable energy costs while reducing dependence on fossil energy imports. Grid congestion will be alleviated through collective balancing at transformer level, improving reliability and avoiding costly infrastructure upgrades. The cooperative model strengthens democratic participation, giving residents direct influence.
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